My new line for telemarketers

I actually don’t talk to many telemarketers anymore–I’m on the do not call list, so nobody’s been calling to sell me aluminum siding or vacation get-aways. Ever since cell phones really took off, it seems that the long distance companies aren’t falling over themselves to get you to switch to their plan, although I do remember plenty of this in the late 90’s. And although we don’t have caller ID, we’ve gotten pretty good about catching the second or so delay from the robodialers and hang up before the telemarketer comes online.

But sometimes someone does get through, and it’s usually either a charity (usually one that I nominally support) or a political campaign, asking for more money. However, I really, strongly prefer to give on my own terms and on my own schedule, and not theirs. So I want to get rid of them, in some way that’s still polite. So this is what I say now:

Although I will continue to support [your cause], I do not make financial commitments over the phone due to identity theft concerns.

All I have to do now is think of a line to get rid of the (overpriced) identity theft “protection” sales pitches that my credit card companies foist upon me.